DJW (DJ Willrich) has supplied, installed and programmed a range of equipment at Fort Edmonton Park, Canada's largest living history site on the bank of the North Saskatchewan River.
The project is centred around the park's recreation of Edmonton's original Capitol Theatre.
Walking through the theatre's lobby; past framed pictures on the wall, which in fact show '1920's moving pictures'; hearing the voice of a 1920's actress over the speaker; guests are ushered into the 250 seat theatre, complete with luxurious red velvet chairs and a magnificent red curtain.
The curtains open partially and the film entitled Northern Light flickers onto the screen in black and white, showing footage of Edmonton as it was in the 1920s.
Then winter sets in and the North Saskatchewan river begins to freeze over. At the same time the screen appears to freeze, ice appears to form over the picture and begins to spread across the theatre's walls. The curtains fully open and side screens appear to increase the projection area and the immersive nature of the show.
At this point 'snow' falls down onto the audience, accompanied by the sound and vibration of breaking ice that shakes the seats and can be felt throughout the theatre.
The chronicle begins with the land and the river, and how it was then used by the Cree Indians and the French fur trappers to trade and develop at Fort Edmonton. The media and effect is used to move the films' emphasis across the stage and screens, and some media - such as the 'York Boat', a wagon and a steam train - all change from film to apparently full-size models as they move across the screens.
This is achieved with partial 3D models being programmed to move from behind the scenes, across the set, appearing between the projection screens.
The show deals with the First World War and the flu epidemic of 1918-19, in which 50,000 Canadians died, but ends on a happy note - celebrating new year in the early 1920's with Edmonton still very much a boom town.
David Willrich, managing director of DJW, said: "This is one of the best projects we have been privileged to work on.
"It is unique in that it uses the best of theme park techniques to interpret history honestly and accurately in a heritage park. It gets the balance spot on between education and entertainment!"
DJW was responsible for all AV system integration and show control programming. The sound system comprises sixteen channels of sound using range of Bose speakers and sound processing equipment.
The rear projection screen, at 14M wide, requires five edge blended Digital Projection Titan projectors using 0.67mm lenses to create the panoramic backdrops.
Front projection is delivered by three Panasonic DZ1200 projectors.
The media delivery platform is a Dataton Watchout system and show control is undertaken using Medialon Manager Pro.
